Baling press



A. ALUOTTO July 19, 1949.

BALING PRESS Filed Jan. 8, 1945 INVENTOR 77 flmam'o fl/uof/o P 00 2 MM5mMd0 ATTORNEYS Patented July 19, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BALING PRESS Antonio Aluotto, Brooklyn, N. Y. Application January 8, 1945, Serial No. 571,741.

This invention relatesto baling presses, and

more particularly to presses adapted to bale such loose and bulky material as waste paper, cardboard cartons, rags, and like materials. The invention is especially concerned with baling presses having a chamber for receiving the loose material and a platen or ram which compresses the material against a compression head of the chamber. In baling presses of this type, it is difficultto form a compact bale of any great size or weight because it is usually necessary to load the chamber to its full capacity with loose material and then form the bale in a single compression stroke. This results in either a large relatively loose and light bale, or a'dense' bale which is quite small. This invention aims to overcome the disadvantages in the apparatus heretofore proposed for baling such loose material as paper and the like.

The invention provides an improved baling press comprising means for initially compressing the material in the chamber in a' succession of compression strokes as the material is added to the chamber, resulting'in a fairly compact mass of material which is adequate for forming a large bale, and means for subjecting the compact mass to the final compression. Advantageously, the compression head is provided with a platen or ram which is reciprocated downwardly and upwardly from time to time during the loading of the chamber to compress or pound the loose material into a relatively compact mass during the loading operation. A second platen is used as a bottom for the chamber and the material is pressed thereagainst during the initial compression. When this initial compression is completed, the platen of the compression head is moved into its position in the compression head and the material is compressed thereagainstby the second platen to its ultimate size.

In one of its embodiments, the invention provides a baling press having a chamber with a pit -in the lower portion in which the second or lower In a preferred and more complete 2 Claims. (01. 100-12) preciable distance below the platform forming the pit in which the loose material is thrown for the initial compression. The lower platen forms the bottom of the pit and the lower and upper platens are preferably pulled during their compression strokes by means of chains engaging sprockets on power-driven shafts.

These and other novel features of the invention will be better understood after considering the' following discussion taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. l is an isometricprojection of an embodiment of the invention, Fig.2 is a more or less diagramranged in such a'manner that a part extends below the floor or loading platform I with the principal part extending above the floor. The end walls 2 and 3 are preferably formed of structural steel supports and plates because they carry the load, that is, they absorb the forces necessary in compressing the material, and are preferably so arranged that they each have interior channels or spaces 4 and 5 for locating parts of the operating equipment. The lower portions of the side walls 6 and! are secured to the end Walls and form a pit 8 below the level of the floor. The pit is actually a part of the chamber In which occupies the interior space of the baler. While the baler may be supported on the floor I with the lower portions of the walls therebelow in a depending position, the lower portion of these walls may be mounted on any suitable foundation.

The doors II and I2 are pivoted on the end Wall 3 by the hinges l3 and I4 and each door preferably has an interiorly projecting flange or lip [5 which fits inside of the ends of the platens assuming a position parallel to the end wall 2 when the door is closed. Any suitable locking .means, such as the lever-operated sliding bolt T I6, may be used to lock the doors.

The bolt ends slide over projecting lugs II on the doors and lock them-in their closed position.

to chains 20 and 2| which engage the chain sprockets 22 and 23, respectively, on the shaft 24. The projecting arms I Band l9 may be connected to the ends of the chains and 2| in any suitable manner, such as by bolting, as shown in Fig. 3. The lower end of each of these chains carries a counterweight which holds the free end of the chain taut. The shaft 24 has on one end the sprocket 26 which is driven by the chain 21 on the sprocket 28. The sprocket 28 is on the shaft 30 which is driven by the motor 3| through sprockets 32 and 33 and chain 29. 'Usinga motor of around "7 H. P.,.for example, and with a suitable proportioning of the various sprockets, the platen I! may be caused to apply a great pressure to the material in the chamber 10; When the motor is stopped or reversed, the weight of the platen -I'l pauses it to travel to the bottom of the pit 8,

In the upper portion of the chamber, and securely attached to the end walls 2 and 3, isithe compression head formed of two end bars 34 and 35 preferably formed of structural steel and welded, bolted, or otherwise secured to the upright supporting structures which carry the load-on the end walls. The central part of the compression head is formed of the platen '36 "which has end projections or arms 31 and '38 *slidably guided'in the upright channels 18' and IS in the end walls. The entire compression fhead may be "formed of the upper platen, as shown "at 36' in Fig. '2,-or'partly by the bars 3'4 and 35 asshown in Fig. 1. The bars 34 and 35 may be of anydesired width; for examplethey may occupy only a small part of the compression 'head. The arms 31 and-38 are attached to endless chains 42 and "43 which "are mounted *on thesprocke'ts 4'4 and 45, respectively, 'on "the drive shaft 46. The connection between the arms '31 and 38 and the chains '42 and '43 may be similar to that between the chains 20 and'2i and the projections 18 and 19. Each of these chains passes arounda pulley 47 near 'thebottom of the end walls and they are thereby held in suitable "taut positions and prevented from "becoming entangled with other parts of the equipment. The motor '48 drives the shaft 4'5 through the sprocket wheels "49 and ""50 and the chain '51; the sprocket wheel '49 being driven from the motor shaft through anysuitable .friction clutch, as in the manner'shown 'in'the Cresci Patent No. "1,371,074. When the motor 48 is driven in one direction, the chains 42 and 43 pull the platen3B 'downward and when driven in the opposite di- "rection they 'pull the platen upward. It is, ac-

cordingly, possible to drive the platen 3B in a succession of upward and downward pounding strokes merely by reversing the "motor '48, in $2.

manner similar to that disclosed 'in the aforesaid patent to Cresci. It is understood, of course, that suitableswitching equipment for-operating both motors is necessary "and that any suitable a type of conventional switching equipment may be used for controlling these 'motors.

In employing apparatus of the invention for forming compact heavy bales from loose paper pit where it becomes the bottom of the "chamber 10. As the materialis accumulated'inthepit'fl, theplaten 3'6 is moved upwardanil-downwardfin a succession of pounding strokes to-compact the loose material against-the uppersurfacenfgplaten comes filled with the material which is fairly well compressed, door II is closed and then the platen 36 is moved up to its upper position shown in the drawing, at which time it becomes a part of the compression head. As the platen 36 is substantially smaller and lighter than the platen H, the friction and inertia of the gearing and driving motor 48 will be sufficient to maintain it inritsuppermost position when the .motor 3| is stopped. Motor 3| is then started and the platen I1 is pulled upward slowly, bringing the partially .formed bale into compressing engagement with .the compression head. In this manner, the material is compressed to its final size. The platen l1 may now be lowered to a position even with the floor I, the doors are thrown open, and the bale is pushed out. It will be apparent from the foregoing description that the preliminary or initial compression of material in the pit results in the formation of a relatively heavy and appreciably 'densi'fied mass of material in the form of a more or less partially completed bale. There is such a quantity of material in this partially compressed bale that it is possible to form a finished bale of relatively great weight merely "by one upward compression stroke of the platen l1.

I claim:

A baling press which comprises side walls and end walls; the side walls and the "lower portions of the end Walls forming a pit adapted to be positioned below the level of a loading floor with the top of the pit substantially level with the floor, the end Walls extending above the ,pit and in "part defining a chamber 'thereab'ove, a lower platen which in 'its lowermost position forms the bottom of the pit, a compression head including an 'upp'er platen adapted to have 'a' fixed position at the upper part of the chamber and in such :position to constitute a closure for the upper ;portion of the chamber, .a door at one side of 'said chamber movable to a position 'to close the chamber at said side, power means for moving the upper platen upwardly, and downwardly bellowthe level ofthe top of the pit ,in a succession "of compression strokes while the lower platen is maintained stationary in its lowermost position in'the pit to initially compress loose material in the pit against the lower platen, means for securing the upper platen in its said upper position, where'it acts as a compression head member, after the material initially has been com- "pressed in 'thepit, and independent power means for raising the lower platen'to alevel above the upper edge of thepit, while the upper plateniis secured in its said upper position, to compress the material against the upper ,platen in ,the final "compressionof the bale, the resulting .balebeing formed in the chamber above the pit, whereby, after opening of said door, thebalemaybere- .moved onto the'floor.

2..A"baling press which comprises side walls and end walls, the side Walls ,andthelower portions of theend walls forming a,.pitadapted.to.b'e ipositionedbelowthelevel-of.a loading floor with 'the'top :of the pit substantially level with the floor, the end walls extending above the .pit .and 'in part defining a chamber ithereabove, a .lower platen which 'in itslow'ermost position forms the bottom of the pit, at least .oneecompressionhead member attached to the upper portions .of the 'endwalls, an upperrplaten. movable :into -.hori- 'zon'tal alignment'with said compression head member :to form therewith .-a compression head 1 1 in the initialcompression. --When the pit 'beand "a closurefor'the upper portion of the chamher, a door at one side of the chamber movable to a position to close the chamber at said side, means for moving the upper platen upwardly, and downwardly below the level of the top of the pit in a succession of compression strokes While maintaining the lower platen stationary in its lowermost position in the pit to compress material in the pit against the lower platen, means for securing the upper platen in horizontal alignment with said compression head member to form a compression head after the material initially has been compressed in the pit, and means for raising the lower platen to a, level above the upper edge of the pit, while the upper platen is secured in such position, to compress the material against the compression head in REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 502,313 McCutcheon Aug. 1, 1893 532,750 Banister et a1 Jan. 22, 1895 556,482 Swanson Mar. 17, 1896 1,315,960 Hubler Sept. 16, 1919 

